


Change of Heart

by Lunarborn



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M, Idk if this has been done but yeah, Original Character - Freeform, chat is pure, luka a total charmer, marinette getting slapped by reality
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-06
Updated: 2018-08-08
Packaged: 2019-05-18 21:47:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,619
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14860896
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lunarborn/pseuds/Lunarborn
Summary: When Ladybug can’t seem to resolve her boy troubles herself, she finds aid from an unlikely source: one of Hawkmoth’s Akuma.Now she's trapped in a parallel world, and it's up to her to find her way out of it.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Heya guys it’s been like literal years since I’ve written for this fandom but I just got caught up on the show and cosplayed ladybug to a con so I was feeling...inspired. Also, I love Luka, what a cool boy :-) and thank you for proof reading as always Tasha <33
> 
> Let me know what you guys think!! It’s been a while so feedback is really appreciated, but tbh it’s always appreciated lol ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

It was just another beautiful spring day in Paris. Beautiful, that is, if you could ignore the Akuma terrorizing the city. And as Ladybug swung towards the scene filled with panic and mayhem, she almost wished she _could_ ignore it. A thought like that had never crossed her mind before, but it took her by surprise only slightly.

Yes, she had agreed to be a hero of Paris, she had had the opportunity to stand down and she hadn’t, and wouldn’t, but that didn’t mean that Hawkmoth’s timing was any less _frustrating_. 

She was more than annoyed with herself, and the hopelessness of her situation with Adrien, especially as of late. Because Adrien didn’t even _notice_ how she felt, and she wasn’t capable of telling him, and if she was would it even matter?

And then Luka had come along, and he was so sweet and charming, not to mention there was something completely magnetic about the boy. She liked him, could feel the buddings of a crush even at their first encounter, and yet…

Even though she knew she should move on from Adrien, who didn’t seem to notice her feelings at all, and possibly pursue Luka, who showed all the signs of being interested in return, she couldn’t. Because she still liked Adrien, a lot, and she didn’t want to feel like she was lying to Luka, or herself. Despite her chances of being with Adrien seeming near impossible.

Not to mention the strange guilt she felt for hurting Chat Noir, having recently seen first hand how serious and intense his feelings for her were. Feelings she couldn’t help not reciprocating, her focus on the two civilian boys so intense she didn’t even have any time to consider Chat’s feelings for a while now. Which made her feel absolutely terrible, worse than she thought was even warranted, despite him being someone she cared for and trusted immensely. 

It wasn’t like she liked him back, so...why was it that she felt guilty, anyways?

She’d been stewing in her thoughts when people starting seemingly disappearing out of existence, the only explanation obviously being an Akuma. So yeah, she might be a little upset, but this was still a top priority.

As Ladybug approached the Akuma, she could confidently say she didn’t recognize the girl, so it must have been one of the many citizens of Paris she was unfamiliar with.

The Akumas icy blue hair was pulled into a thick braid, and she wore a long form fitting dress and mask, both an ashy white. She had a white fan, and as she blew a gust of wind at a nearby citizen, they...vanished?

“I am Reversa! And it’s time the citizens of Paris see things on the flip side!” She proclaimed, making more citizens scramble out of her way as she shot gusts of wind at them.

Ladybug still wasn’t really sure how seemingly making citizens cease to exist was making them see anything, but that didn’t matter right now.

“Not if I have a say in it!” Ladybug proclaimed, catching Reversa’s attention as she took her yo-yo in hand.

Looking around the scene, it appeared as if Chat Noir had yet to arrive.

“Well it’s a good thing you don’t have a say in it then, isn’t it?” Reversa laughed darkly, “I can see it, you know..”

Ladybug froze for a moment, confused. “See what?”

“How frustrated you are! But it’s only because you’re blind! I’ll help you see..Hawkmoth will have to wait for your miraculous, but that matters little.”

As Reversa spoke she began aiming her winds at her, although her aim seemed more frantic. Quickly, Ladybug sprang back into action, dodging the blows quickly while trying to figure out a way to close in on her without disappearing herself. Seriously, where was Chat Noir? Usually he would have made a dramatic appearance by now.

Just then, Reversa paused, clearly seeing something out of the corner of her eye. She grinned wickedly before turning and aiming her fan at someone else.

Ladybug was bounding towards the wind to intercept it without any thought to the repercussions, and she was reminded again of how she wasn’t thinking clearly today. Why was Adrien standing in a nearby side alley anyways?

And why did Reversa suddenly take aim at him? Unless she knew of their connection, it made little sense to her. But it was too late to ponder it now.

Judging by the other victims sudden disappearance, she was half expecting to just vanish from existence or something when the wind hit her. She was also partially expecting the experience to be somewhat painful, but when it hit and she closed her eyes in anticipation only to feel nothing, she frowned.

And realized that she still could frown, and that she felt the cool leather of someone else’s fist against her own, heard the cheers of the citizens of Paris around her. She wrenched her eyes open.

Marinette was...really confused. She was still Ladybug, expect her and Chat Noir had seemingly just defeated an Akuma, were in the middle of their celebratory fist bump, and the Akuma victim looked nothing like Reversa had, even now that he was cured. He. Reversa was a girl, and this Akuma...they’d already defeated it. She remembered it.

She had been blankly staring at Chat Noir for a good five seconds, trying to process what was happening, and he was looking at her quizzically now.

“You okay, Ladybug? Not drooling over me again, I’d hope.”

He laughed lightly with his words, and she blinked slowly at him.

“What..?”

He was joking. Chat Noir always joked around, of course, but he’d never made a joke like that. It also sort of sounded like...there was truth in that…joke.

“Hey, seriously though, are you alright? I know I kind of hurt your feelings when I didn’t show up to your date, but I already told you, I want to be honest with you. You’re my best friend and I have feelings for another girl.”

“Um...okay.” She said lamely.

He shook his head at her. “No it’s not okay, and I’m truly sorry Ladybug. I can’t help that I don’t reciprocate your feelings, but it was still wrong of me to not communicate with you more properly before.”

Ladybugs mind drew a blank for a long moment, and she felt the eyes of Paris on her as she stood there dumbfounded, miraculous beeping and mouth slightly ajar. Chat Noir was looking into her eyes sincerely, but suddenly she couldn’t meet his gaze.

The weirdest part was that she actually felt _hurt_ by his rejection. Which, like everything else, _made no sense_.

“Uh, I have to go?”

She parroted the words out like a question, backing away slowly at first before she turned and full on sprinted away from her partner, heart racing frantically.

There was a sinking feeling in her gut as she flew past the buildings she knew by heart, all of them feeling _off_ somehow, despite looking exactly the same. She couldn’t be sure, but she had a hunch, the only thing that could make sense was that Reversa had somehow done this. Yet her mind almost wouldn’t let her even think of it, rejecting the concept completely as panic overtook her.

By the time she had swung her way back to her own rooftop her transformation was ending, but she was hardly paying it any kind of attention, practically falling back into her room. Ignoring Tikki completely, she scrambled over to her bed, her stomach dropping as her suspicion was confirmed.

There was a picture of Chat on her cork board, and as she looked around in horror she noticed that her walls were littered with other candid photos of her superhero partner, some with hearts and love struck comments written on them in her own handwriting.

“Oh my god. What. Is. Happening.”

“What do you mean, Marinette? Is everything alright? You were acting pretty strangely back there.”

Tikki was hovering over her shoulder, looking at her Ladybug with concern.

“Tikki, you must be joking. Look at my room. He’s all over my walls, Chat Noir is staring at me from four different angles, and Adrien is supposed to be there instead.”

“Adrien..? You’ve liked Chat Noir for years…”

The Kwami sounded genuinely confused, making Marinette's gaze snap to her as fear began to grip her.

“You’re not my Tikki,” she breathed. “Reversa must have trapped me in some sort of alternate world, where everything is...different.”

“Reversa? Who is that?”

She hugged her knees to her chest and breathed deeply. Okay, she couldn’t ever recall being trapped in an Akumas world quite like this, but Reversa said she couldn’t get her miraculous in here. And if that was the case there must be a way out, right?

But if she couldn’t take her miraculous, then why was Tikki not aware of the situation she was in? Maybe it was because this also seemed to be in the past, or that this still was Tikki, but the imprisonment only allowed for her to know the truth. This was quite the complicated Akuma, then…

Tikki was tugging at her pants, but she felt a little bit sick at the thought of talking to her, because apparently she didn’t understand her situation, and Marinette had yet to get a grasp on it herself.

“Marinette, please explain what’s going on. Something’s clearly not right…”

“I don’t like Chat Noir.” She mumbled into her jeans.

“Okay,” Tikki spoke softly. “Why have your feelings changed then?”

“They haven’t. I never liked Chat Noir, he likes me and I like Adrien!” She exclaimed, frustrated.

Chat Noirs mischievous face being taped purposefully on every one of her walls didn’t really make for a convincing argument.

Tikki looked taken aback by her tone. “Alright, there’s no need to yell at me, Marinette, I’m just trying to understand the situation you’re in.”

She winced at her Kwamis scolding, realizing quickly that she was lashing out at her unintentionally and feeling guilty for it instantly.

“I’m sorry Tikki, I didn’t mean to be that way, I’ve just…”

She took a deep breath and braced herself, completely unsure as to whether or not this alternate Tikki would believe her.

“I probably sound like a crazy person, but I was fighting an Akuma named Reversa and now I’m here. And here, where I like Chat and not Adrien, and Chat doesn’t like Ladybug, is not where I’m from. And you don’t seem to be on the same page and I guess I’m the only one in this world who is and it’s a little overwhelming.”

The frantic edge to her jumbled words probably wasn’t helping anything, but she couldn’t stop it from all pouring out in that manner.

Tikki was quiet for a long time, and it made Marinette look up nervously. Her Kwami seemed to be thinking intently about something, before nodding at her.

“Well, if that is the case, then there’s certainly a way back too, and I’ll help you find it. There’s no need to be afraid.”

“You believe me?”

“Well of course I do Marinette, why would you make all this up? Besides, you’re a terrible liar.”

Tikkis supportive smile and comforting words eased her considerably, despite the knots still twisting in her gut.

“At least some things haven’t changed, Thanks Tikki.” she sighed in relief, falling back into her bed.

“Of course Marinette. For now you should rest, it’s getting late.” The Kwami smiled, fluttering over to rest next to her on the pillow as the sun set outside her windows.

Marinette's eyes began to drift closed, the exhaustion of her emotional turmoil hitting her. Her eyes snapped back open at the sight above her, however, disturbing her previous journey towards rest.

She winced as she caught sight of a Chat Noir poster taped directly above her on the ceiling, his teeth bared in a boyish grin as he winked suggestively for the unknown photographer.

“But what else _has_ changed…”

She tossed and turned for what felt like hours after catching sight of the poster, Chats eye contact with the camera making it feel as if he was looking at _her_.

She finally found rest when she angrily threw her own pillow over her head to block his gaze, knowing her neck would be sore in the morning, but deeming it worth it. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it’s been a while!!! I swear I’ll try and update my mystic messenger fic soon too, I had a change of plans moving and just found a job. As always life has been hectic but I hope it’s worth the wait. :’)
> 
> As always, please let me know what you thought in the comments! It’s inspiring and helpful and I’d really appreciate it!
> 
> (Also thank you for the beta Natasha ily <3 )

One of the seemingly many downsides to being stuck in an alternate world was not knowing what was familiar and what was alien. Marinette was known for sleeping in and missing class, but instead she found her eyes forcing themselves open at the crack of dawn, her mind racing with the situation she was trapped in, and preventing her from gaining much rest. The sun had only just begun to rise on her first official day in Reversa’s strange world and already she was on edge, almost fearful to get out of bed with the knowledge that everything could be completely different in a unknown way.

And then there were the Chat posters staring her down, his beautiful eyes invasively following her as her feet creaked across the wood of her floor. It reminded her too much of how _he_ had kept her up all night, and that was bizarre enough as it is.

She tried climbing up the ladder to her balcony as quietly as she could manage with her blanket still wrapped around her shoulders, quickly grateful for it when the cold of the morning air began chilling her face as she stepped outside.

The enormity of the situation she was in was too much for her to be able to rest at the moment, so much on her mind that she at least needed to _try_ and sort out.

As quickly as she could, she made the few cold steps to her lone lawn chair and sat, covering herself completely as she looked out onto the waking Paris.

The brisk, fresh morning air accompanied with the familiar view of her home helped to ease her nerves slightly, and after a careful moment she began to prod at the the subject she was struggling with most. Chat Noir. The posters she had plastered all over her walls of him had left her restless and unable to sleep most of the night, and the only experience that had ever been comparable was the effect Adrien had on her.

Which was strange, because she definitely liked Adrien, more often than not, her embarrassing sputtering around the boy wouldn’t let her forget it. So then, what was this? Perhaps a strange side effect of being trapped in this dimension, or a spell Reversa had placed on her specifically…? If that was the case, this akuma had powers that were completely unheard of, she had never even thought an akuma could _have_ more than one ability. She groaned, throwing her head back on the lawn chair. If she was being honest, Marinette knew she didn’t have enough information yet to be sure. The only person she had come into contact with so far was Chat Noir, aside from her parallel Tikki, which lead her to believe school was her best bet if she wanted to find out more.

Letting the cool of the rooftop sink into her feet again, she padded across the space towards her room once more. Well, whether she wanted to or not, interacting with more people in this world was the only plausible way to find holes in it, and eventually a way out.

As she quietly got ready for school earlier than she ever had, Tikki stirred and flew up to her, meaningful look in her eyes.

“Everything okay, Marinette?” The kwami murmured, voice still groggy from sleep.

“For the most part...I guess I’m just nervous about what it is I’ll find at school…”

“But you need to know.”

It wasn’t a question. Marinette nodded.

“Yeah. I do.”

Getting ready at sunrise provided her with too much time, and she actually was able to find the packet of homework piling on her desk and catch up on it. It was a happy distraction for once, and she was relieved to see it was material that she had covered in her own world. That definitely made completing it easier, and by the time she was done she had enough time to eat breakfast and head out.

If she looked at her parents as if they’d grow an extra limb each on the way out the door, so be it. Marinette didn’t mean to eyeball them really, she just had to make sure they were normal. And when they were, just as always, acting themselves, she was even more surprised by the fact. Hm. If Chat Noir had changed, why hadn’t they?

“Weird..” she muttered to no one at all, her cold breath visible in the air as she headed out.

—————————————————————

“Woah girl, am I seeing things? I can’t remember the last time I saw you here this early!”

“Nope, haha. Not seeing anything except me actually being on time!”

Marinette laughed rather weakly at her friend as she sat down. Alya blinked at her, apparently not as amused by the obvious cover up as she was by Marinette's punctuality. The laugh turned into a cough. A lapse of silence followed.

‘ _C’mon_ ,’ Marinette thought, ‘ _do something strange and jarring and very un-Alya like.’_

She wanted very much for Alya to prove to her that she wasn’t losing her mind. That she was in an alternate dimension and everyone was different. It would be terrifying if she did, but it would also mean the she didn’t just have some weird delusioned dream about Chat Noir rejecting her.

“Spill it, Marinette.” Alya deadpanned.

She could cry, ridiculously enough because Alya was being Alya. Okay, did she make it all up? But she was talking to Tikki when she was awake, she knew she was, and those posters were definitely there when she woke…

“I didn’t sleep well is all…” she mumbled, sounding somewhat defeated.

Alya scoffed. “What, were you fantasizing about Chat Noir again?”

Marinette balked. “Er...What?”

A strange fluttering filled her chest, and suddenly she was nervous. She cheeks tinted pink before she could register she was blushing, and she was twining her fingers on her lap for some sort of balance. At just one off, and yet completely Alya question. She couldn’t be sure if she was questioning Alya or her own physical reaction.

Her friend was smirking now, a smug look in her eyes.

“Ohhh so that’s it, isn’t it? Don’t know why you’re playing dumb though girl, I’ve known about your crush for how many years? Hell, I’ve even helped you decorate your room because of it!”

Decorate…? And then suddenly it hit her, those candid, too close photos of Chat hanging from her wall. Him often suggestively posing for the camera, scandalous eye winks and quirks of lips, that even her partner with all his playful charm wouldn’t display for just anyone.

Marinette gasped aloud at the realization. “You...photographed Chat Noir for me. So I could hang his posters up in my room.”

Because he made her heart flutter and her cheeks warm. Because in this world, Chat was her Adrien. And he had just rejected her yesterday evening for some unknown girl. She couldn’t pinpoint exactly how that made her feel, but it wasn’t good.

“Uh, duh? Is that a question? Did you hit your head? I report on the latest of Paris’ superheros all the time, the least I can do is get you some pics of your celebrity crush! Next one I’ll get autographed, swear.”

“Right.” Was all Marinette could choke out.

The bell for class rang. She hadn’t even noticed that everyone had filed in, or that ten minutes had gone by speaking to Alya.

“It’s such a shame, though,” Alya whispered at her, “Sometimes I really wish you’d give up the whole Chat in shining armor thing and see the more realistic option _right_ in front of you.”

Marinette struggled for a good few seconds, trying to get the words in process in her mind. They wouldn’t, and she was just left dazed, annoyingly enough.

“You’re such a heartbreaker, you know?” Alya added, sighing.

Marinette was now only more confused, but before she could ask, Miss Bustier started speaking in front of them.

—————————————————————

Class dragged on rather dully, and after a couple of minutes Marinette had begun to tune out the whole lecture. She instead had opened her notebook to a blank page, scribbling down ideas and theories as to what the point of this world was, and more importantly, how to get out of it.

She had nearly jumped out of her seat when, abruptly, the paper answered back, in writing that wasn’t hers.

 _Open your eyes to the truth. It’s simple, really. Or were you not listening before? You’re blind_.

The shock of the event quickly wore off though, as she could easily put a name to the bizarre action. Reversa. Well, it was somewhat helpful that she was giving her a hint, she supposed. Despite that hint being seemingly vague and useless.

Couldn’t Reversa talk to her about this in person, anyway? It wasn’t as if Marinette was actually expecting the villain to tell her how to get out of here, but she wasn’t making her feel any less crazy and on edge by telepathically writing on her paper.

In all her focus on her predicament and lack of focus on class, she almost missed the fact that Adrien hadn’t shown up today. It wasn’t too surprising, he most likely had some important photoshoot his father was making him miss class for.

She felt a pang of disappointment at his absence however, because a part of her was curious as to how this world had changed him. But she quickly dismissed the idea. Probably it hadn’t changed him at all, much like Alya. After all, she failed to see how he played a part in Reversa’s world. He was probably just sweet, typically unobtainable Adrien, and weirdly enough that wasn’t as disappointing as it probably should have been.

When the bell rang Marinette's bag was already packed and she was rushing out the doors, and then dragging her feet on the way home. Everyone was acting more or less the same, aside from Chat, and she had learned nearly nothing. It was troubling, because if she couldn’t ‘see the truth’ as Reversa put it, how could she get out? So far it didn’t seem as if she had any other options.

Reversa was trying to show her something, that much she knew. She just had to find out what that something was, and the akumatized villain would be satisfied enough to release her...right?

She sighed, pulling the door to the bakery open. There was no guarantee, but it was her most viable option right now. Tikki had been with her all day, peeking her head out of her bag when timing allowed it, so she probably was on the same page, but it didn’t hurt to see—

“Marinette, would you mind taking this order to a customer? She’s a regular, and I’m too busy to deliver it myself.”

“Ah, of course. What’s the address?”

She held her sigh in until she was out the door again, so her father wouldn’t hear. It wasn’t his fault this delivery was terrible timing. And while she couldn't exactly openly speak to Tikki with so many people around, a walk could take her mind off her predicament.

The tiny bag only contained a few small pastries, and it was strange for someone to pay a delivery fee for something like this, but still. A walk was nice.

Although a walk was much nicer when it wasn’t interrupted halfway through by an akuma attack. While the villain terrorizing the streets was eerily familiar, an akuma whom she’d clearly faced in past, it meant nothing if she couldn’t find a secluded place to transform in the commotion.

After a few seconds of scanning the area, she turned the corner, finding a small side alley that was seemingly abandoned.

Only to run into Chat Noir right before the words of her transformation could leave her lips. She squeaked in surprise as he literally dropped in on her from seemingly nowhere, completely oblivious to the fact that she had almost revealed her secret identity to him.

She turned to look at him with bewilderment as he sauntered over to her, his whole expression elated and soft at the same time. Something clicked in her mind then, because she recognized that look. That tender devotion, the unfaltering adoration. It was a look she had come used to having been reserved for her, as Ladybug. Only now, with her heart in her throat and her cheeks warming, did she realize she _missed_ it.

Marinette tried to remember that it was clearly only Reversa’s influence, but it was becoming increasingly difficult to even properly focus. Ironic how the girl he had been rejecting her for was actually, well, _her_. 

“Princess,” He crooned, voice a mix of affection and worry, “What are you doing here? You know it’s not safe.”

He stopped directly in front of her, his smile morphing to a stern frown, and worry winning over by the end of his statement.

“I mean, of course I’m here to keep you safe, but if I wasn’t…”

Chat looked genuinely upset now, even as his clawed hand moved to hold her cheek.

She wanted to clear her throat, tell him that, yes it was dangerous, and that's why he should stop caressing her and she should _leave_. But it was just as when her crush with Adrien was new, she was tongue tied and light headed, annoyingly so, and it prevented her from doing what she needed to.

“Speaking of,” he muttered, “Where is Ladybug? The last time I saw her, well I…”

Marinette finally found her voice, the mention of her alter ego focusing her attention elsewhere.

“I’m not sure, but ah, I-I’m sure she’s on her way. Anyways, that akuma is rampaging through the street; I’m sure I’ll be perfectly safe here while you go and keep them company!”

Chat seemed to actually contemplate her idea, and she almost sagged in relief. “Alright...but just stay put, okay Princess? I’ll be right back to make sure you’re safe. Promise.”

And with a grin and wink that both poorly concealed his evident worry, he was gone.

Waiting a long moment for safety’s sake, she finally deemed herself in the clear to not stay put at all.

“Finally,” she groaned, “Tikki, spots on!”

—————————————————————

Chat had been struggling greatly with the akuma when she’d arrived, and if he thought it strange that she already knew how to handle it, he didn’t bring it up. He did, however, mention their last encounter, apologizing genuinely for the hurt he had caused.

She was brushing it off easily, since his affections were ironically still for her. She was certain it would have hurt much more if she hadn’t known that, though. That it would be much harder to muster a genuine smile, to convince him that she was fine with it. Marinette wondered.

Is this how Chat feels, when she rejects him? ‘ _Probably_ _worse_ ’, she reasoned. ‘ _After all, he doesn’t have the reassurance I’ve just been given_.’

And as she rushed off to de-transform in that alley before Chat could make it back first, Marinette thought that she was beginning to see the truth that Reversa had been speaking of. 


End file.
